One Bread, One Body

DON'T CHANGE THE SUBJECT

"Then the people came to Moses and said, 'We have sinned in complaining against the Lord and you.' " —Numbers 21:7

One of God's favorite subjects is repentance from sin. "I tell you, there will likewise be more joy in heaven over one repentant sinner than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need to repent" (Lk 15:7). Any repentance from sin makes God happy since Jesus' blood will then not have been shed in vain.

No matter what we're talking about, Jesus will usually change the subject to repentance from sin. "You will look for Me, but you will die in your sins" (Jn 8:21). Since we don't like this talk, we'll also try to change the subject. Nevertheless, Jesus will repeat: "That is why I said you would die in your sins. You will surely die in your sins unless you come to believe that I AM" (Jn 8:24). We don't like a conversation about dying in our sins, so we keep on trying to change the subject. And so it goes — Jesus insisting on repentance from sin so that His death will not be in vain, and us stubbornly insisting to talk about anything else.

Jesus is not going to change, so if we're going to talk to Him, we've got to talk about the plank in our eye (Mt 7:3). Later we can talk about someone else's speck. Let's confess our sins and not change the subject.

Prayer: Jesus, may I make a good Lenten Confession and be washed clean of sin by Your precious blood.

Promise: "Moses accordingly made a bronze serpent and mounted it on a pole, and whenever anyone who had been bitten by a serpent looked at the bronze serpent, he recovered." —Nm 21:9

Praise: Helen asked her friends to pray a novena for the discernment of her vocation.

(For a related teaching, order our tape on The Necessity of Confession for Renewal on audio AV 70-1 or video V-70.)

Rescript: In accord with the Code of Canon Law, I hereby grant the Nihil Obstat ("Permission to Publish") for One Bread, One Body covering the period from February 1, 2007 through March 31, 2007.†Most Reverend Carl K. Moeddel, Vicar General and Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, August 3, 2006 & September 18, 2006.

The Nihil Obstat ("Permission to Publish") is a declaration that a book or pamphlet is considered to be free of doctrinal or moral error. It is not implied that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat agree with the contents, opinions, or statements expressed.